The Dragon Awakens
by DiscordantSymphony
Summary: She is her Father's true heir, she was raised to be a Queen. Any who denies that, are her foes. And her foes, will be the ones who wake the Dragon. Rhaenerya Targaryen has much more than simply a moral victory.
1. Prologue

The Dragon Awakens.

Prologue

She had always adored King's Landing after dark, ever since she was little more than a little girl. She would stare out into the darkness of the night and watch the twinkling little lights of candels in windows and listen to the sound of ships coming into the harbor. A city was a living, breathing thing and at night, she could hear it's heartbeat as easily as she could a man's if she placed an ear to his chest.

She could hear it's heartbeat now as well, thought it was not so sweet a sound. When she had been younger, she was certain that the city had loved her as much as she loved it. Now, there was no love at all. Now there was only hate. And the lights in the dark were not the gentle twinkling of candle lights and lanterns, no, it was a red and angry line of torch flame, moving slowly but surely up Rhaenys's hill towards the Dragonpit.

Even from where she stood, she could hear the voices. Kill the monsters, they cried. Kill the demons, they demanded. This is our city, that one was repeated again and again and again and again. She could feel their hatred, it was as scorching as any dragon's breath and she knew that her reign was slipping out of her hands before her every eyes.

An insistent tugging at the sleeve of one of her dresses made her turn her head, her sweet Joffery, her last Strong son, always wanting to prove to his brothers and to her that he was just as brave and just as them. It reminded her of Harwin, an ugly man in truth but he had been so dear to her. She had loved him more than she had ever loved either of her husbands.

"Mother, we have to do something! The dragons! They are going to kill Tyraxes!" In that moment, she knew that her son was right. The mob would march on the Dragonpit and kill all the dragons within, her own dragon was safe inside of the Red Keep but the four that sheltered in the pit would be massacred if something was not done. She had to do something, or what little advantage that she had left would be taken from her.

But Rhaenrya Targaryen, the first of her name, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Lady of the Six Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm, was paralyzed with fear and grief. She had already lost so much, her own royal Father who had adored her and balanced her on his knee during council meetings so that she could learn what it was to rule.

Her Harwin, who for such a big and ugly man had been so very gentle with his touch and had given her three strong sons to remember him by, Daemon who had abandoned her and betrayed her and choose death rather than return and be at her side, her sweet little Visenya, who had been too small by far, too small to breathe.

Her Jacerys, who had been so brave and agreed to see his brothers to safety and died in vengeance for them, her Lucerys who had been cravenly murdered by that one eyed fuck who should have been hers to kill, her Viserys, who had been so young and was lost at sea, burned or drowned. No parent should outlive their children, not so many, surely?

Her brave and bold Joff and her sweet baby Aegon, they were all that she had left to her now. Her last children, she could not lose them as well. She would take them both with her into Maegor's Holdfast and wait out this storm. Guards would be on the walls of Maegor's and the walls of the Keep and if the smallfolk and their Shepard, dared to turn their attention on to her.

Well, she still had her Syrax. She would burn all those who tried to harm her and her children.

"Do not worry so Joff, one taste of Dragonflame and the people will return to their hovels." It must have sounded as convincing as she felt as Joff looked stricken and turned to look over the balcony again as the line of torches inched ever closer to their fate. A new chant raised up into the air now, calling her Queen Cunt, Queen Whore and Maegor with Teats.

_They called me the Realms Delight once, and smiled when I throw them alms and flowers and gave them bread._ But they hated her now, and for why? Because she rose taxes on them? War's were expensive and she did not start one, all she had wanted was what was hers. What her Father had promised her since she was a little girl.

And they had stolen it from her, Aegon had done that. He and his thieving whore of a Mother. They had taken everything from her and all she had done was fought to get it back, was that so wrong? Once the war was over and Aegon was dead, she would have been a good Queen. She would have, she just needed to win. That was all she needed to do.

But what Queen could hope to hold when her city did not love or want her? When all her allies had abandoned her, what did she have? She wanted to weep, she wanted to close her eyes and curl into a dark corner and simply wait for the end to come. Let Aegon, if he was still alive, come and claim her throne if he would have it. She was so very tired, all she wanted to do was rest.

Yet she could not pull herself away from the balcony, she simply watched as the light grew ever and ever closer to the pit. Joff had started with his insistence that they do something and Aegon was weeping, sobbing about how scared he was. Rhaenyra didn't want to see anymore, she took both of her son's by their hands and marched over to the door.

The men on the door were Valemen, she still had some loyal friends and none could be more loyal than those who had come from her Mother's kingdom and she was quick to entrust her last two boys to them. Rhaenerya commanded them to take the boys to the Queen's Ballroom, one of the safest parts of the castle within a castle and informed them that she would be with them shortly.

Ser Lyonel Bently had the honor of guarding her that night and she marched her way down the steps and towards the drawbridge, Ser Adrian Redfort had the guard of that and he cautioned her about leaving the safety of Maegor's but she would not hear of it and the drawbridge was lowered soon enough and Rhaenerya walked across it with Lyonel behind her.

A part of her wished to go and be with Syrax, but it was only a small part of her and the rest of her moved to where she had to be. The Great Hall had never been so silent, most of her court had already taken refugee inside of Maegor's and so Rhaenerys could be alone. She commanded Ser Lyonel to stay by the doors and then Rhaenerya crossed the halls and began to climb the dais and then the steps of the Iron Throne itself.

She was the first woman to ever sit the Iron Throne in history, oh, Queen Visenya and Queen Rhaenys were said to have been allowed to sit the Iron Throne when King Aegon was not there and much the same was said about Queen Alysanne when justice was to be delivered and all of the men were away, but Rhaenerya was the first Queen to sit it by her own right and not at the whim of any man.

It felt right, when she sat down. Not comfortable, never comfortable. But it felt like it was hers, and it was all slipping away with her unable to do something. She leaned back and closed her eyes, and if she wept, it was silent and the only other person present was too far away to see her. This could not be how it ended for her, it couldn't.

_Then don't let it be how it ends._ A voice whispered to her, inside her own mind. It almost sounded like it was her own voice, but it was colder and harder. _You are the blood of Aegon the Dragon, and this is what you choose to do when you are faced with your own enemies? Weep in the darkness? Does the Dragon fear the sheep? Aegon would have killed them by now._

Aegon never had to fight with his own blood, she found herself thinking. Aegon never had to deal with both of his sisters suddenly deciding that they would rather be Queen's in their own right.

_If they had, Aegon would have stopped them. He would have put them down, he would not cower when the might of House Targaryen itself was threatened. Do not let this happen, remember who you are Rhaenerya Targaryen, remember your blood, remember your words. Stop this, before it's too late and all is lost._

The voice was gone then, and Rhanerya opened her eyes as the tears dried on her cheeks. She rose from the Iron Throne and descended the steps and crossed the Hall and looked at Ser Lyonel. "Be quick, find Lord Commander Glendon and tell him that his Queen has need of him. Now more than ever, he is to gather all the members of the Queensguard and meet me by Syrax. Be quick Ser."

"As your Grace commands." Ser Lyonel spoke and then she was alone. She nodded and walked back out into the Courtyard and hurried over to where Syrax was chained. In truth, she was overly surprised when she found Joff trying to climb on to her dragon. In fact, she smiled. _He may have a Strong for a Father, but I am still his Mother. He is the blood of the Dragon too._

"Joffery, come down from there. At once!" Her voice was as sharp as a whip and Joff tumbled off her dragon's back and Rhaenerya hurried over to him and took her Son by the ear and dragged him up to his feet. Joff wriggled like a fish caught at the end of the hook and Rhaenerya waited for a few moments before she let go.

"Mother! That hurt!" Joffery said with a pout that reminded her that he was all of twelve and the boy rubbed at his ear. "Mother, please! They are going to hurt Tyraxes! Please, you have to let me go and stop them! They can't hurt me when I am on Dragonback, let me go and make you proud! I beg of you. Please!"

"Joffery, you are a prince. Calm yourself." The boy looked at though she had struck him and he bent his head, a mop of thick brown hair fell in front of his face. Rheanerya knelt and tilted his head up so that he would see her face. "And you are right as well, we must stop them. And we will." The Queen rose to her full height as her son stared up at her.

Her Queensguard choose that moment to appear. "Your Grace, the Prince is-" Lord Commander Glendon stopped speaking when his eyes landed on Joff, who had the decency to look abashed and ashamed, starring down at his feet. "Here."

"Indeed he is, Lord Commander, and do you now know where he is going?" The Lord Commander shook his head. "He is going with you, take as many men as you need with you and ride to the Dragonpit as quickly as you can. I will give you some more time but you must hurry." She turned to her son then and rested her hands on his shoulders. "Joff, ride to the Dragonspit and mount Tyraxes and take to the skies, but do nothing else until I am with you. Do you understand? I am your Queen, and your Queen commands."

Joff stared at her and then his shock and confusion melted away and he nodded, and for just a moment, Rhaenyra saw something of her Harwin in him. "As her Grace commands."

Rhaenerya nodded and turned to her dragon's keepers who had come to see the scene. "Strike her chains." As they saw to that, she climbed atop the dragon and stared up into the darkness. As soon as Syrax was freed, her great wings began to flap and she slowly took to the air and the ground faded into the distance, becoming so tiny.

The line of light was so close to the nest they had made for the Dragons, Rhaenerya would not have it. She uncoiled her rider's whip, rose it, and brought it down.

Syrax roared and dove, and the night came alive with fire.

End of Prologue.

* * *

**OKAY BUT I AM THE BIGGEST RHAENERYA TARGARYEN FAN, YOU DO NOT EVEN KNOW. LONG MAY SHE REIGN.**

**Hmm, any way.**

**I always wanted to write a story about an alternate version of what would happen if Rhaenerya kept the throne at the end, how that would happen and what the long reach consequences might be.**

**So yeah, expect another long story. And if you enjoyed this little prologue, follow, favorite and review for me.**

**Tons of love,**

**DiscordantSymphony**


	2. The Shepard

The Dragon Awakens.

The Shepard.

He was filled with such glorious and holy purpose that he had never felt so close to the Seven before. He was no longer useless, empty headed Pate. He was a man with a holy mission. To rid this city of the demons who had taken it for their own. Yes, this was their day now and it would be there day forever after this darkest night had passed.

And when the morning sun would rise on the city, freed of demons that breathed fire and soared through the air and the monsters who sat upon the high hill and wed themselves to their own brothers and sisters and the Shepard's place in the greatest of the Seven Heavens would be all but assured. All those who died in their quest, would be lifted up and placed into the Mother's arms to rest.

Oh yes, it would be glorious in the end and all would be well in the end. He urged the people on, leading them in another chant. The hate and the resentment that they held for the Queen was as thick as a bowl of brown which you could stick a wooden spoon in and leave it to stand on it's own. It was only natural for them to rage against her, it was not right for a woman to be above a man.

And of course, the murder of the sweet little Queen Helaena had been the spark that had lit the kindling that had been built as high as a castle and would end in the inferno that would bring about the end of the corruption that ruled over the city. The Queen had said that the woman had ended her own life by jumping into the moat but the Shepard knew that not to be true.

The little Queen had been well loved by all the people of the city, after all. When word came down from the Red Keep that she had been found dead, impaled on metal spikes of the moat, the entire city which had not been a happy place for so very long had fallen into mourning for the most gentle of queens and the cruel queen increased her taxes and fanned the flames of her people's hate.

It did not take long then for the whispers to start in the winesinks and the pot shops that Rhaenerya Targaryen had taken the broken young Queen in her arms and tossed her into the spikes herself, and it did not take much for most of them believe it. The riots broke out, and once the Shepard had promised that they would be freed once the dragons were dead they had picked up their torches and their clubs and axes and some large and rough stones.

Was this how a highborn felt when they lead their armies into battle? Maybe this was why they choose to march to war as often as they did, the sense of purpose, the glory and the knowledge that you were going to win out in the end. Oh yes, he liked this.

The pit where the Targaryen's kept their monsters was so very large now atop it's hill and his flock, his army of holy warriors, stood in it's shadow. The air was thick with evil, he could feel the demons in the air. But not for very much longer, soon they would all be free of the monsters and his name would be song off for the rest of time, in the halls of the gods and the halls of the kings as well.

The Shepard took his first step up the hill and then a roar cut through the night air as a great beating of wings and a large shadow crossed over them, the weakest of his followers screamed and quaked and even a few turned and ran but he was pleased with how many of them stayed firm in the face of the demon, they had the gods on their side, they did not need to be afraid.

If they died, they would be raised to the heavens. What reason did they have to be afraid? To cast off the chains that bound them to this sinful world, that would be a greater reward than any of them could dare to hope for. The great yellow demon came to a rest on the roof of a nearby stone house at the foot of the hill, it's green eyes peered out of the darkness at them.

He could not see the whore, but he knew that she was there. Her presence was just as terrible as the great yellow beast that she rode upon. And when she spoke, her voice came out of the darkness like a cold knife cutting through his flesh. "Good people!" She shouted to them, to some it must have looked like the dragon itself was speaking. "I am Queen Rhaenerya of House Targaryen, the true Queen of the Seven Kingdoms and the Queen of this city. Your Queen! I am the daughter of King Viserys, the first of his name! I know that you all have grievances with me. But I am the one who was betrayed."

"A war is not easily fought and it is not easily won, nor is it ever done cheaply." The dragon shifted it's weight on the roof and leered down at them, it's great maw opening. "I know you are harmed, I know that you think that I am a monster but I swear to you that I am not. Return to your harms and do so now and I swear to you I shall forgive the treason that you are committing."

"If you do not then, then I will remind you of who and what I am. Fire and Blood, good people. Fire and Blood." Perhaps before, that might have been enough to cow the good people of the city and send them running back to their homes as fast as they could but not this time. This time it seemed as thought the people would not be cowed.

He had not seen who had thrown the first stone, a large ugly black thing that was the size of a melon that he had once seen on a Lord from the Reach's table, but that did not matter. It landed near the bloated yellow dragon's foot and made it rear back and that seemed to encourage all of the other followers to strike back at their oppressor.

More stones, broken bits of pottery and rotted dung was flung at the dragon and the Queen who rode it. A massive man strode forward, carrying the largest of all the rocks which he then flung up. It was too heavy to go all the way up but the impact against the wall seemed to scare the queen, who let out a cry of fear that was barely heard, due to being drowned out by the cries of awe and joy from the crowd below.

Some of the very bravest rushed forward and began to scale it like ants would scale one of their hills, these ants would be the ants that killed a dragon. The dragon screamed and flapped it's wings and took to the air once again and the people cheered but soon enough those turned into screams of horror as the dragon dived at them, a great blast of flame rushing out of it's maw and consuming over a dozen of the good and faithful people in it's inferno.

The Shepard reared backwards away from the flames, so hot that it seemed to burn the very air itself. It was worst when the shock of it passed and his body reminded him that he was alive and the smell of burning flesh rushed into his nostrils and the back of his throat burned from the both the smoke and the rush of bile that clawed up the inside of him.

So many turned and ran then, or dived in between the narrow spaces between the houses but there was no safety to be found as the dragon swung back around, roaring out it's rage as another stream of flame rushed out of it's maw and consumed dozens more of the people of the city. And with each that was burned in the flames, more turned and ran.

The Shepard ran as well, not abandoning his holy purpose, no never that. But he must slay the dragons in the pit, the monstrous queen might be more evil or cruel than any demon spawned in the seven hells but she was still trapped in the feeble body of a woman, once she saw that the pit had fallen to them, then she would lose all of her courage and fly away, perhaps even abandoning the city as well.

He soon found himself crouched in a hovel with twenty others, a dozen women, six men and two little children who were clinging to their mother. They all looked at him for answers and he stood. "Good people, stand strong. The gods send things to try us, the heavens are never won cheaply. But by dawn I swear to you, the demons will be dead and this city will be yours again!"

Before, his words had brought cheers and arms being raised to the sky and cheers for all of the demons to die. Now, there was only terror in their eyes and he wanted to scoff at them all for their weakness, for their lack of conviction. The gods would punish them for that, confine them to one of the lesser heavens for their weakness.

But despite their hesitation, they still rose for him. The hatred for the Queen still ran deep within them and she had done nothing to help with that when she set her monster on to them. Any hope of ridding themselves of her, even if it was a small hope indeed, was better than none. Even as the roof of the hovel that they sheltered in shook under the wing beats of the dragon above.

"We must push on to the Dragonpit, the demons must die lest the gods take their wrath out on us and condemn us all to the seven hells. Find your courage, good people and follow me!" The Shepard rose and walked out of the hovel, he heard some following him but he did not dare to look back and see how many they were.

The night sky had turned a shade of orange, a dozen of the roofs of a dozen different hovels were burning to ashes. He could not see the dragon, but it seemed to have flown away from the pit. They moved quickly and quietly and did not stop to look at the burned and twisted bodies on the ground. The smell was even more terrible than it had been before.

Long lines of flame burned across the ground, and someone somewhere was screaming in such agony that he had ever heard before. She was a monster, a terrible monster who deserved to burn in the worst of the seven hells and he would make certain that she would, even if it killed him. That did not matter, so long as she died with him.

"It's coming back!" Someone screamed and the Shepard looked up at the sky and there it was, the great yellow beast diving down at them and breathing fire. The faithful scattered and the Shepard cursed at them and at Queen Whore as he picked a direction and ran as quickly as he could in order to get away from the dragon's rage.

He soon found himself in a small square tucked between two builds and yet more of the army that he had lead into battle were cowering in the darkness, in that moment he hated them. They were so brave and bold, speaking the words of how they would kill the Queen or how they would kill her monsters but when it came to actually doing it, they were all so craven.

And now they were glaring at him, as if it was his fault. "We never should have done it." A crone with a filthy face whispered in a dark corner, her long fingers twitched as she looked up into the sky. "All the septons used to say that the dragons were like the gods, and to strike at them was to strike at the gods and now look whats happened. She's going to burn us all."

"She burned my brother." A boy who could not have seen more then twelve years with too dark a look for one so young in his eyes. "He said we were going to be knights, he said we going to slay dragons and that we were going to be in songs. But the Queen's dragon burned him to ashes, he pushed me out of the way so I wouldn't get burned."

The Shepard opened his mouth, to say something that would get him out of this and to gather their courage once again. The Queen still had a woman's heart, if they gathered all of the people and split them in half and send one half against the Red Keep, then she would focus her fire on them to protect her sons and allow the rest of them time to enter the dragonpit and make an end to the demons.

But then another cry went through the air and for a moment, he had thought that it was the Queen's dragon but it was not so deep and then a brief shadow fell over the square as another dragon flew through the sky and for a moment, he dared to hope that it might have been King Aegon's dragon but it was not so, as soon both the dragons began to fly around one another, in circles above the city.

It was one of her sons, it had to be. The older boy, the bastard. She had allowed him to ride his dragon and what hope did they have for victory now? Not even a fool's hope, it was done. No more flame rained down on the city but the dragons kept flying, around and around and around again. The message was clear enough.

He had to go, he had to flee. In the chaos and the fire he might yet be able to flee from the city, he would go somewhere else. Oldtown, he could go to Oldtown. He rose and began to leave the square but someone sized hold of his arm and flung him down to the ground and his hip screamed in agony as he landed on the ground.

All the people stood around him, their eyes were as dark as any hell and he tried to find the words, the voice that they had all followed before but his throat was so dry and he could not speak. A large man, with a woodcutters axe in his hands, glared at him and more of them came, the crone clung to a rough iron knife, the boy held a large rough stone, and others simply had their firsts.

The axe was the first to be rose and the first to fall but it was not, by any means, the last. And in the end, the Shepard drowned in his own blood in a little square in King's Landing as the wing beats and roars of dragons sang through the fire lit night.

End of Chapter

* * *

**Another chapter done and I hope everyone enjoyed it.**

**Please consider leaving a review, a follow and a favorite. With a ton of love,**

**DiscordantSymphony**


	3. The Hand of the Queen

The Dragon Awakens.

The Hand of the Queen

His eyes were not used to the light, not after so long that he had been left in the cells below the Red Keep where not even the slightest hint of light could pierce the blackness. He had thought that he would die down there, in the dark. He would not be the first man to do so, nor the first noble man and while he did not trust in his historical knowledge to so great an extent as to claim it openly he doubted that he would not be the first Hand to die in these cells.

Of course, he would be the first Hand of the Queen to die in the black cells. Wouldn't that be a legacy to leave behind him? Lord Corlys Velaryon let out a bitter chuckle that turned into a hacking cough, he had never been known for having a weak chest before but the endless darkness had seemed to sap all of his strength and make him as weak as an old man.

Once the coughing had ceased the man who had brought him up from the black cells pressed a cup of water into his hand and it might just be that he would not make that dubious honor after all. It seemed that Queen Rhaenerya had decided to make an example of him, no doubt he would be lead out into the yard where all of the castle would be gathered to see him lose his head.

Well, he would keep his head high before he lost it. Whatever else he was, if he truly was a traitor and that was how history would remember him then so be it, it would not remember him as a coward. He would march on to the wooden platform and rest his head on the block and would not shut his eyes through out it all. It would be a good death, his last moments would be ones of honor.

He wondered if Addam had made it back to Driftmark yet or even if that was where he had chosen to go after he had fled the city, it was his home but would he wish to draw the Queen's wrath there? Corlys did not think that he would, perhaps instead he would take his dragon and fly across the sea and chose to live the rest of his life in exile.

Or maybe he would go over to Aegon and the other traitors and in the end prove that Rhaenerya was right to not trust any of the dragonseeds, of course if he had gone over to Aegon he was not sure if he could blame him or hold him to account for that. The betrayal at Tumbleton had been a blow to all of them and the Queen had been terrified of being turned on again.

Thus the purge of the remaining dragonseeds began, there were only the two that remained on the Queen's side. His son and the girl Nettles had been sentenced to death. He could not just stay silent, Addam had done nothing wrong, he had committed no treason and even if he had done so he was his son.

And so when Queen Rhaenyra had ordered that Addam was to be arrested he couldn't not send word for him to flee the city, if he had remained then he would die and there was no question that Corlys could allow that to happen, he would not be able to survive it. He had thanked the gods when news had returned to the Red Keep that Addam had mounted his dragon and flew away from the city before the queen's guards had been able to get near him.

His joy had been somewhat short lived of course, it had not taken the Queen long to work out who had sent word and her guards had him bound, beaten and thrown into the Black Cells to rot.

Time didn't exist in them, he could have been in them for a few hours or he could have been in that endless darkness for decades. There was no way to truly tell, though according to the growth of his beard and the word of the guard who had brought him back up to the light he had been down there for a few weeks.

It didn't seem possible, to be honest. Every moment seemed like an eternity.

But, at least he wouldn't have to be faced with going back down there. The worst of the seven hells couldn't be worse than that darkness.

The door to the room that he had been shoved in opened and a man grabbed in the white mail of the Queensguard walked in, he could not tell who it was as he was wearing the white helm with his visor down. But even after he had taken it off Corlys still did not recognize him, of course there had been something of a curse when it came to keeping the members of the Queensguard alive.

Of course, such things could only be expected when a war was being waged and the city that the Queen ruled over did not have the best opinion of her, she had lost count of the amount of assassination attempts that the Queen had suffered over the last half a year. The people of her city had loved her once, had cheered when she had driven Aegon away but now they hated her more than they ever had him.

Before he could address the man, to ask him for his name, another few men walked into the room. There were garbed in the fine clothes that labeled them as being members of the Queen's household, two of them carried in a copper tub and another man carried in a clay pitcher that had steam drifting up off of it, the hot water was poured into the tub and more and more of the pitchers were carried inside.

Did the Queen wish for him to look better before she executed him? He did not truly see the point if that was to be the case, he was being executed for treason after all and no one would expect him to be in the best condition. No doubt they would expect him to stink of his own filth and to be nothing more than a bit of skin stretched tightly over his bones with his beard a ragged mess.

To be sure, he was not far from that. But why the Queen would want him in better looking condition he did not understand, his state would serve as a warning after all to all of those who would even consider the notion of betraying her. That lesson lost some of it's impact if he was marched forward scrubbed cleaned, his bread shaved, his belly full and dressed in fine clothes once again.

Not that he was about to complain about it, of course. The warm water in the tub relaxed the tension in his muscles and he by pure reflex shut his eyes and in an instant he was almost threatened to be lulled back to sleep, the servants left the room as he washed himself except for the Queensguard, who stood as silent as a statue as he stared forward.

It was certainly not a pleasant experience, bathing as another man was watching him but Corelys imagined that he had been ordered to keep watch to ensure that he would not try to drown himself in his own bath water. The Queen wished for his head, it would not do for him to end his life in a way that she did not approve of.

By the time that he had finished cleaning himself the water had turned from crystal clear to a murky brown and Corelys could not hide his disgust. He hadn't bathed more than once every two weeks before but after being stuck down in the Black Cells the filth must have built up, if he weren't going to die today then he might just consider having a bath every few days, if not every day.

But he was cleaner than he had been and so he rose out of the bath, at the same time the Queensguard banged on the door and a moment later it opened and more servants walked in, this time all of them were women. The oldest one, a sternly matron with grey hair and a stye under her eye carried a towel made from lambswool which was warm but scratchy.

Another two women laid out some clothes for him on the bed, they were certainly not as grand as his old clothes to be sure but they looked to be finely made and considering he had spent the past few weeks in the same clothes he was not about to complain. The shirt was silk and the trousers were wool and both felt nice against his skin.

There was one more woman, who had stayed even after the others had left to let him dress, and she carried a covered silver platter. She laid the platter on the table and Corelys mouth began to water when he saw a ham that had been basted with honey, studded with raisins and looked like the most beautiful thing that he had ever seen. Next to the ham was what looked to be a small loaf of brown bread and some strong looking cheese.

His stomach took control of him then and without asking or hesitation he hurried over to the table, sat down in the chair and pulled the platter closer to him. There was a knife on the platter, no doubt to be used t carve up the ham but he paid it no mind. Instead he clawed into the meat with his own hands and brought bloody chunks so salty and sweet meat up to his mouth.

It wasn't very dignified, to say the very least. But he was too hungry to care very much about how he looked in that moment. He had been feed, after a fashion, while he had been imprisoned in the Black Cells but it was the meanest sort of fare. Thin broths and heels of bread that had been weeks and weeks old, at best.

So being dignified could go and rot, it was the finest meal that he had ever known and by the time he was done all that was left of the ham was a smear of grease, honey and blood. He almost managed to finish off all of the cheese and half of the loaf of bread before he was certain that he was not going to be able to eat any more.

"If you are ready, my Lord?" The Queensguard asked and he nodded, he supposed that he was ready as he was ever going to be, as ready as anyone ever could be for this. He rose from the table and followed the man out of the room and kept his head up high as he walked to what he knew would be his death. He must not be afraid.

It was the longest walk of his entire life, but he did not let his head fall even for a moment. His eyes were set straight ahead and his steps did not falter, even for a moment.

When they stepped out into the courtyard, the sky was covered by a layer of thick grey clouds from which not even the slightest hint of sunshine could break through. The ground was muddy from what must have been a heavy rainfall the night before and the air smelled of salt and shit and smoke and Corelys loved it more than any words could ever hope to describe.

He shut his eyes and filled his lungs with air, it was the sweetest sensation that he had ever felt. He opened his eyes again when a mailed arm was left on his shoulder. "Come my lord, the Queen is waiting for you."

Waiting for him? He did notice now that there were no crowds waiting in the courtyard and nor did there seem to be any sort of platform for him to climb. He had a thought as to why that might be, but he did not want to consider it too greatly in case he turned out to be wrong. The disappointment would be too much for him to bear, if it turned out that in the end he was wrong.

So, he followed the Queensguard across the yard and over to the Tower of the Hand. Had it always been so tall? It had been so long since he had seen the tower that had been his home for months and months, it almost seemed to loom over him. When he had last been in it he had been the most powerful man in all Seven Kingdoms, when he left it the last time he was a traitor against his Queen and now that he was returning to it he truly had no idea what he was.

He did know that he was getting far too old to be walking up all of these steps, he was certain that when the Tower of the Hand had been planned that such a tall tower was meant as a mark of honor but for an older man it was a pain to make his way to the top and to the bottom every single day, for months and months.

The Queen was waiting for him inside his apartments, the last time that he had seen her she had been sitting on the Iron Throne so very high above him. Her violet eyes had been so consumed with rage that he had truly though that he would wind end that day in the belly of her dragon, in the end a beating and being dragged off in chains would be almost pleasant compared to that.

There was no rage in the Queen's eyes now, indeed she almost looked more nervous than anything else which did seem so very odd to him as even when Rhaenerya had been a girl she had always been so very bold, she was the King's only child and his chosen heir and the future queen and she knew all of that to be true and held herself high above most anyone and saw it all as her right.

But the Dance of Dragons had left its scars on her, before this war had started she had five sons to call her own and now only two were left to her, she had been with child before her Father had died but the daughter that she had brought into the world had never even took a breath, so he had been told. Much had she lost.

But even with all of that, she had never shown any fear. She had always kept her head up high and acted like the Queen that she was. News was not quick to come down to the Black Cells and he did not know what could have changed since he had been confined, but something clearly had.

"Lord Corlys, please be seated." The Queen commanded and while her eyes might have shown some weakness, her voice did not give anything away. It was iron and it did not quiver, even for a moment.

Corlys did not see any reason to disobey the command, and if he wanted to entertain even the slightest notion of keeping his head then it would be foolish to do so. He walked across the room with the Queensguard knight following behind him and took a seat on the other side of the desk, keeping his arms at his sides and waited for the Queen to speak.

She reached out for a pitcher on her desk first and poured herself a cup of water, that struck him as odd as the Queen would always choose wine instead of water and on a platter in front of her was topped with hard bread, it was food for a sinner who had chosen to spend time in a penitent's cell in order to fast and redeem themselves for their sins.

Rhaenerya picked up the hard bread and nibble at the edge of it for a moment and then placed it back down on the plate. "I was wrong to do what I did to you Lord Corlys, you were only trying to protect your son. I see that now, I was wrong to to try and arrest Addam for something that he did not have anything to do with, I was wrong."

"Your Grace, I...I'm pleased to hear it, truly? I am." It seemed more likely now that he would be able to get a pardon, both for Addam and himself and that could be the end of it. "Where is my son, has he returned to Driftmark?"

"No, my Lord...I am afraid that your son is dead." The world had ended then and there, it had to have done. The pain was so quick and so immense that nothing and no could have survived it.

But his heart had the nerve to keep beating and his ears listened as apparently word had reached them of a great battle at Tumbleton, a battle that his son had commanded a small army from the back of his dragon and had ended with the two betrayers dead and hopefully burning in the very worst of the seven hells but in reclaiming his honor he had lost his life.

"He proved to be a loyal man, in the end. Loyal to me and to the crown, I am shamed for how I treated him and how I treated you for simply trying to save him." Rhaenerya rose and walked over to the window of the apartments that looked over the courtyard. "I can still smell the smoke, the people of my city threatened the dragons of my family and my children, I brought Syrax down on them and would have drowned this city in flames for my sons. I do understand, you committed no crime in my eyes."

She turned to face him with her arms crossed over her chest. "My lord, what happens next is up to you. If you find that you can not forgive me for what I have done...then I shall not blame you for that, I will arrange an escort to take you back to Driftmark and let that be the end of it. It is the very least that I owe you, for all that you have done and all I have done to you."

"But if you would forgive me and would continue you to serve, then I would give you your proper place at my side as Hand of the Queen."

A part of him wanted to spit in her face, the part of him that had been a prisoner and the part of him that was mourning his son. But the part of him that was a good man, a loyal man, that part of him would always be in control of him and so he rose and walked over to Rhaenerya and knelt before her with his head bowed.

"Your Grace, I am your man."

End of Chapter

* * *

**Another chapter done and I guess some people might think that maybe Corlys forgave Rhaenerya too quickly, but keep in mind that he has invested a lot in her in this point and the fact that she is willing to make him Hand once again, which literally makes him officially the second most powerful person in the realm is a soothing balm.**

**As for Rhaenerya, while she does feel regret when it comes to how she treat Corlys and Addam, that is a more practical reason for this. After she had arrested Corlys apparently half his forces had abandoned the city and some even joined the riots in King's Landing, so she does have some use in giving him back the position of Hand.**

**Anywho, if you enjoyed please consider leaving a review as well as following the story and adding it to your favorites.**

**With a ton of love, **

**DiscordantSymphony**


	4. The Green Queen

The Dragon Awakens.

The Green Queen

There was still the taste of ashes in the air and smoke lazily drifted up into the sky, most of the fires had since been put out but a few still stubbornly clung to life. Like her, in a way. Her hand came up to play with a loose thread on the sleeve of her gown. It was green, the same shade of green as the gown that she had worn at the feast of the great tournament which had opened it.

All of the gowns that had been provided to her were in the same colour, the rest of her clothes had been burned. The very same gown she had worn that day was still in one of her trunks, it sometimes pleased Rhaenerya to order her be dressed in it. Well, she could have all her little jokes for as long as they made her laught.

But Aegon was still out there, somewhere. Her sweet boy, her king. So long as that was true then she would allow herself to feel hope, and when her son came to take his city back from his treasonous murderous bitch of a sister then it would be her turn to laugh, and laugh she would as Rhaenerya was made humble and her last bastard was killed in front of her.

Yes, that day would be so sweet that she did not doubt that everything she had to suffer up to now would be worth it.

There was a knock at the door to her chamber and moments later her maid walked in and curtised to her, well at least some of the people still within the Red Keep showed her the defernce which she was due, she had been a wife to one King and all true and loyal men knew that she was the mother of another no matter what Rhaenerya thought in her madness.

Her maid drew her a bath and once Alicent had scrubbed herself clean her maid then helped her into another gown, it was green of course but at least it was of a finer cloth of the one that she had worn already and so she would wear it, when all this was over however she was going to use as much coin as she could get her hands on to buy a legion of new dresses, in a thousand different colours.

Maybe she would make Rhaenerya dress in black as she waited for her execution, kept in mourning for the rest of her hopefully very short life. That thought pleased her that for a moment, alone in her chambers, she forgot she was a prisoner in the castle where not so long ago she had walked the corridors of as it's queen.

Sadly, it seemed that all her happiness was to be temporary as another knock came at the door and when her maid opened the door she found that it was one of Rhaenerya's servants, another traitor to her son who she was going to have put to death as she had thought of doing to all the traitors that had taken up residence in the Red Keep.

But again, it was something that she would simply have to wait for. "My Lady," The servant adressed her and Alicent could not stop herself from bristling at that, whatever other lies that Rhaenerya had told herself and those that supported her that didn't change the fact that Alicent had been wed to King Viserys in front of the entire realm, she was still a Queen if that spoiled little bitch wanted to admit it or not.

"The Queen wishes to see you, I am to bring you to the throne room." The servant spoke and when Alicent tilted her head to look around the door she could see that there was a knight in the white armor of Rhaenerya's Queensguard and she knew that the only choice she had in that matter was if she was going to go with her head held high or if she was going to have to be dragged there.

Well, she certainly didn't intend to give Rhaenerya the satisfaction of that sight and so she held her head up high and walked out of the chamber following after the servant with her maid trailing behind her. It was a long walk, oddly. She was certain that she had walked greater distances to get to the Throne Room than this and yet none of them had ever felt so long as this.

All of the eyes in the Throne Room fell on to her as she entered, it was not a sight that she was unused to in her time but where as once it had been love and adoration for her as Queen that was in their eyes now it was hate and disgust, what once were friendly smiles were disgusted sneers, where one she was spoken to with sweet words and kind tones and everyone made it clear how much they loved her, how much they had admired.

And it wasn't even Rhaenerya's traitors, she saw faces in those that had assembled to watch this farce who had spoken to her and told her that in their heart of hearts they knew that Aegon was the true king but it seemed that those same faces had told Rhaenerya differently. She hated them so much, and she would have all their heads on pikes before this was done, she swore it to all those who did her harm.

At the top of the throne, her son's throne, was the whore herself. Rhaenerya was dressed in black and red as usual, her long silver hair was braided in the style of Visenya as if the whore was even the shadow of the queen and woman that she had been, it was pathatic to see. She was still fat, the strain of carrying six children had left their marks on them and the weight had marked her.

Her sons were in front of her, the bastard was standing at the foot of the throne with a circlet that he had on his unworthy head. The gall of it made her want to spit. The youngest boy was there, and this one had silver hair at least but it was also the one who Rhaenerya had stolen her own son's name from, a spitful insult to say the least.

The other six men of the Queensguard stood in a loose circle in front of the Iron Throne, and the man that escorted her went to go and stand with his brothers. They all wore full plate and their helms today so Alicent could not tell who was who but that really did not matter to her, no matter who they were they had chosen to serve the whore and seeing their faces would not make her hate them any less, she swore that.

Corlys was sitting to the right of the dias, which did suprise her as she was certain that the man was still rotting in the dungeons because his bastard that Rhaenerya had made legitamate had betrayed the whore had run off. But then, Alicent had been cut off from the rest of court so there was much that she was behind on.

"You asked for me, princess?" Nothing would ever make her call the bitch a queen, not anymore. She could do whatever she wanted with her and still she would not break on that point. Not a one of them could make her. "What can I help you with?"

"Thank you for indulging me, Mother." She put a fine point on the word that made Alicent want to grind her teeth, if she thought that Rhaenerya could not get any uglier then she was proven wrong when the whore smiled, it was a smile that sent a shiver down her spine. "In truth, I do not want anything from you. However, a bit of interesting news has reached my ears and I thought that you would like to hear it."

Suddenly, her knees felt like they were going to buckle and she did not trust herself to speak. None of the news that had come to the capital as of late had been any good for her, the last good news that she had was when she heard that Daemon had abandoned her. A part of her had hoped that he would come and rain fire down Rhaenerya and the both of them would kill one another but it seemed that she was not to have that.

Rhaenerya spoke more then, when it was clear that Alicent was not going to ask for any clarification. "Last night, a man came into this city. A man, beneath notice. I would not normally here from such a man directly, but he brought me a very interesting story and I could not help myself. So, I ordered to have him brought to me so that I could hear his words."

"As you know, my Lady. My dear brother, the one that you carried within you and brought into the world and nursed at your trecherous breast has been in hiding ever since I took the capital, and the Iron Throne, from him." She seem to take a great deal of pleasure in dragging out every word and Alicent was certain that she had never hated her as much as she did in that moment.

"I've turned Westeros upside down and inside out looking for him, my armies have clashed with his so many times and yet there has not been the slighest sight of him, I had began to think that perhaps that my dear little brother had run off across the other side of the Narrow Sea, that he had abandoned all of his loyal men. I do not think it would be beneath him, after all. Treason and theft was not."

She bite her tongue so hardly that she could taste blood, it was that or she would not be able to hold her tongue as Rhaenerya continued on with her slander of her son. If she said something then the bitch might try and have her sent away, to torment her all the more by keeping any news of her son away from her.

It wasn't as if it would be out of character for her, Rhaenerya did enjoy tormenting her. It seemed to be the only thing that gave her any joy, as of late. At least her own daughter was finally free of her, her poor little Helaena. Her heart broke every time that she thought of her, which was quite often now.

"But it seems, that he did not run so far from me at all." If there was ever anything more terrifying than hearing fire in a Targaryen's voice then it was hearing ice, and that was all that was in Rhaenerya's tone. Cold and cruel and unyielding. "It seems that your son will never be content until he has stolen everything from me, he stole my crown and now he wants my castle."

"A fisherman smuggled a message to me from Dragonstone, Aegon is there and he has taken my castle for himself. The reason that I have not been able to find him is because all of this time he's been hiding under my nose." Rhaenerya rose from where she sat and began to walk down the steps, and she looked terrifying. "I called you here to say goodbye Mother, I will mount Syrax and lead the royal fleet to Dragonstone and the next time you see me it will be with your son's head on a pike."

Alicent's knees buckled and this time she did not manage to stop herself from falling to the ground, she collapsed in front of the Iron Throne and looked up at the woman that she had onced called daughter, the woman that had rejected every gesture that Alicent had made, she had tried to be fair and she had spat on all of it and now she was going to kill her son.

"Rhaenerya, Rhaenerya please. I beg of you." The tears started and she wouldn't be able to stop them even if she tried, they were coming so fast and so quickly that she had no hope at all of stopping them. There was no hope. She was lost. "He is my son, my last son. I beg of you to take pity on him, he is your brother. Your share a Father."

"A father, yes. A Father that I loved more than anyone, a Father that I do not doubt that you murdered and left to rot in his rooms while the both of you conspired to steal my throne from me. He is no innocent in this, he is a traitor and his only reward now will be to suffer a traitor's death." She was on the dais now, still high above her.

"No, no it isn't true. I didn't kill Viserys, I loved him." And she had, she had loved him so much. At first, but then she had done her duty and brought a son into the world and Viserys did not see sense and make him his heir as he should have done by law, even when Alicent had given him two more sons it had not been enough even as Rhaenerya shamed him by having bastards parade in front of him as if they had any right to be his grandsons. "And Aegon, h-he didn't want it. He said it, he said 'what sort of brother am I if I steal my sister's crown?'"

That got through to her, made her stop at the very least and the entire court was muttering as they wondered what she would do next. Rhaenerya's features wavered and then they hardened, her lips thinned into a cruel line. "But he did steal it, he could have refused you no matter what lies you may have poured into his ears but he still took it all the same, and I will not have you bleat mercy for your sons. Three of my sons are dead because of this war you started, when Aegon is dead we shall be finally even."

If it was grief or rage or sheer madness, Alicent could not say as she looked back on it, but something compelled her to say it. "My sons are trueborn princes, the purest Valyrian blood! Not a one of your bastards, not even one of Daemon's get, could ever hope to be worth even half of one of my sons. Tell yourself whatever lies you wish, but we will always know that to be true."

The bastard made a move to come near her, but his Mother stopped him. Her eyes were hard and there was no mercy in them. "Enjoy those words, my Lady. Because they have gotten you what you want, I will not bring your son's head back to King's Landing. I will bring him back, alive and well. I shall have him walk naked through the streets, with iron fetters around his wrists. I shall have the people know that this is the man truly responsible for all of their suffering, I shall allow them to throw rotten fruit and stones at him and whatever else they can get their hands on."

"I shall march him into this very throne room, and I will make sure that the last sight he sees is me sitting on my throne as I have his eyes taken out. Then, I will unman him and then I shall give him to the gaelor's and the lord confessor, and then when he is broken. When there is nothing left of the son you knew, I shall allow you to come forward to kiss his brow before I feed him to Syrax."

"And then, my Lady, I shall see to you. And I will not be so kind." The court was silent as the Queen left, both her sons following behind her and Alicent cared for nothing else as she wept and wept and wept.

End of Chapter

* * *

**Oof, this is a heavy chapter but I think a good one, I also want you guys to know that this will not be the last Alicent chapter by a long short and we will be seeing her again.**

**Next chapter, we go to the P.O.V of another Green...**

**Please leave a review, follow and favourite if you enjoyed.**

**With all the love in the world and the warmest of regards,**

**DiscordantSymphony**


End file.
